There is still considerable debate regarding [[Thomas Jefferson]]'s purported '''Welsh ancestry.'''<ref>This article is based on RLM, "Jefferson's Ancestry: English or Welsh?", February 9, 1990.</ref> To date, no hard evidence connecting Thomas Jefferson's known ancestors to Wales has been found at all.

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There is still considerable debate regarding [[Thomas Jefferson|Jefferson's]] purported '''Welsh ancestry.'''<ref>This article is based on RLM, "Jefferson's Ancestry: English or Welsh?", February 9, 1990.</ref> To date, no hard evidence connecting Thomas Jefferson's known ancestors to Wales has been found.

"The tradition in my father's family was, that their ancestor came to this country from Wales, and from near the mountain of Snowdon, the highest in Great Britain. I noted once a case from Wales, in the law reports, where a person of our name was either plaintiff or defendant; and one of the same name was secretary to the Virginia Company. These are the only instances in which I have met with the name in that country. I have found it in early records..."<ref>Jefferson, Thomas. ''Autobiography,'' ''[[Short Title List|L&B]]'' 1:1.</ref>

"The tradition in my father's family was, that their ancestor came to this country from Wales, and from near the mountain of Snowdon, the highest in Great Britain. I noted once a case from Wales, in the law reports, where a person of our name was either plaintiff or defendant; and one of the same name was secretary to the Virginia Company. These are the only instances in which I have met with the name in that country. I have found it in early records..."<ref>Jefferson, Thomas. ''Autobiography,'' ''[[Short Title List|L&B]]'' 1:1.</ref>

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Jefferson went on to say that the only "particular information" he had of any paternal ancestor was about his grandfather, also named Thomas (1679-1731). While Jefferson knew little about his father's line, he was well-informed about his mother's people, the Randolphs: "They trace their pedigree far back in England and Scotland, to which let everyone ascribe the faith and merit he chooses."<ref>''[[Short Title List|L&B]]'' 1:2</ref>

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Jefferson went on to say that the only "particular information" he had of any paternal ancestor was about his grandfather, also named Thomas (1679-1731). While Jefferson knew little about his father's line, he was well-informed about his mother's people, the Randolphs: "They trace their pedigree far back in England and Scotland, to which let everyone ascribe the fath and merit he chooses."<ref>''[[Short Title List|L&B]]'' 1:2</ref>

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Henry Randall, a nineteenth-century biographer, took the line only to Jefferson's grandfather Thomas. Randall mentioned the tradition of emigration from Wales and also noted that a Jefferson was among the Colonial Assembly at Jamestown in 1619.<ref>Randall, ''[[Short Title List|Life]]'', I:5-6.</ref> In Sarah Nicholas Randolph's life of her great-grandfather, she included Jefferson's statements from the ''Autobiography'' about a Welsh connection. She also cited the Jefferson name among the legislative assembly in Jamestown in 1619, adding that the Jeffersons first arrived in Virginia in 1612. But she had no evidence for a link between the Jamestown Jefferson and Thomas Jefferson's line.<ref>Randolph, [[Short Title List|''Domestic Life'']], 4-6.</ref>

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Henry Randall, a nineteenth-century biographer, took the line only to Jefferson's grandfather Thomas. Randall mentioned the tradition of emigration from Wales and also noted that a Jefferson was among the Colonial Assembly at Jamestown in 1619.<ref>Randall, ''[[Short Title List|Life]]'', I:5-6.</ref> In Sarah Nicholas Randolph's life of her great-grandfather, she included Jefferson's statements from the Autobiography about a Welsh connection. She also cited the Jefferson name among the legislative assembly in Jamestown in 1619, adding that the Jeffersons first arrived in Virginia in 1612. But she had no evidence for a link between the Jamestown Jefferson and Thomas Jefferson's line.<ref>Randolph, [[Short Title List|''Domestic Life'']], 4-6.</ref>

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More recently, Dumas Malone took the line back one more generation, to a Thomas Jefferson who was living in Henrico County in 1679.<ref>[[Short Title List|''Malone'']], 1:6.</ref> Malone also observed that Jefferson never spent much time on the remote subject of genealogy.<ref>Ibid, 1:5.</ref> Though the Welsh connection remained elusive, Malone noted that Peter Jefferson named his place on the James River "[[Snowden]],"<ref>The discrepancy in spelling between the Jefferson plantation on the James ("Snowden") and the mountain in Wales ("Snowdon") has yet to be investigated.</ref> after the mountain in Wales where early Jefferson supposedly lived.<ref>Ibid.</ref> Beyond the first Thomas Jefferson (Jefferson's great-grandfather), Malone felt the records were too scanty to draw any conclusions.

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More recently, Dumas Malone took the line back one more generation, to a Thomas Jefferson who was living in Henrico County in 1679.<ref>[[Short Title List|Malone]], 1:6.</ref> Malone also observed that Jefferson never spent much time on the remote subject of genealogy.<ref>Ibid, 1:5.</ref> Though the Welsh connection remained elusive, Malone noted that Peter Jefferson named his place on the James River "Snowdon," after the mountain in Wales where early Jefferson supposedly lived.<ref>Ibid.</ref> Beyond the first Thomas Jefferson (Jefferson's great-grandfather), Malone felt the records were too scanty to draw any conclusions.

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Two possible lineages have been presented. In an essay in the ''Collected Papers of the Monticello Association'', Olivia Taylor presented material which places the early Jeffersons in England, not Wales. Beyond the Thomas Jefferson who died in Virginia in 1697 is the Jeaffreson family, a well-documented English line from Samuel Jeaffreson (d. ante Oct. 23, 1590), owner of an estate in Suffolk, to Samuel Jeaffreson (bapt. Oct. 11, 1607 - d. after 1685), a planter in St. Christopher's and Antigua. This Samuel Jeaffreson had three sons, Samuel, Thomas, and Richard.<ref>Taylor, Olivia. 1965. "The Ancestry of Thomas Jefferson." In [[Short Title List|Shackelford, ''Descendants,'']] 38-44.</ref> This Thomas ''may'' be Jefferson's great-grandfather; however, no concrete evidence has yet been unearthed that this man and the person we know to be Thomas Jefferson's great-grandfather are one and the same.

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Two possible lineages have been presented. In an essay in the ''Collected Papers of the Monticello Association'', Olivia Taylor presented material which places the early Jefferson in England, not Wales. Beyond the Thomas Jefferson who died in Virginia in 1697 is the Jeaffreson family, a well-documented English line from Samuel Jeaffreson (d. ante Oct. 23, 1590), owner of an estate in Suffolk, to Samuel Jeaffreson (bapt. Oct. 11, 1607 - d. after 1685), a planter in St. Christopher's and Antigua. This Samuel Jeaffreson had three sons, Samuel, Thomas, and Richard.<ref>Taylor, Olivia. 1965. "The ancestry of Thomas Jefferson." In ''[http://tjportal.monticello.org/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=3150 Collected papers to commemorate fifty years of the Monticello Association of the descendants of Thomas Jefferson]'', ed. George Green Shackelford, 27-38. Princeton: Princeton UP for the Monticello Association.</ref> This Thomas ''may'' be Jefferson's great-grandfather.

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Another lineage has been proposed by Edgar Hickisch in an unpublished monograph on Peter Jefferson.<ref>Hickisch, Edgar C. [http://tjportal.monticello.org/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=6214''Peter Jefferson, Gentleman.''] Unpublished manuscript, n.d.</ref> Hickisch cited the work done by Marie Therese Jeaffreson in the British Museum.<ref>Jeaffreson, Marie Therese. 1926. The pedigree of the Jeaffreson family. ''The Researcher'' I: 32-34. [http://jeaffreson.googlepages.com/ Available online.]</ref> According to this source, one John Jeaffreson came to Virginia early in the 17th century, made a fortune, and returned to England, where he married Ann Scott and purchased Dullingham House. (Peter Jefferson named a daughter [[Anna Scott Jefferson Marks|Anna Scott]].) The coat of arms John Jeaffreson acquired was the same as the one used by Thomas Jefferson. Members of this family who emigrated to Virginia, presumably to find fortunes equal to John's, were William in 1650; Mary in 1653; and Thomas, who arrived about 1660. This Thomas might be Jefferson's great-grandfather; but his English origins are still unclear.<ref>ibid., 3-10.</ref>

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Another lineage has been proposed by Edgar Hickisch in an unpublished monograph on Peter Jefferson. Hickisch cited the work done by Marie Therese Jeaffreson in the British Museum.<ref>Jeaffreson, Marie Therese. 1926. The pedigree of the Jeaffreson family. ''The Researcher'' I: 32-34.</ref> According to this source, one John Jeaffreson came to Virginia early in the 17th century, made a fortune, and returned to England, where he married Ann Scott and purchased Dullingham House. (Peter Jefferson named a daughter [[Anna Scott Jefferson Marks|Anna Scott]].) The coat of arms John Jeaffreson acquired was the same as the one used by TJ. Members of this family who emigrated to Virginia, presumably to find fortunes equal to John's were William in 1650; Mary in 1653; and Thomas, who arrived about 1660. This Thomas might be Jefferson's great-grandfather; but his English origins are still unclear.<ref>ibid., 3-10.</ref>

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Further work needs to be done; evidently no one has made any efforts in Wales.

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Further work needs to be done; evidently no on has made any efforts in Wales.

== Footnotes ==

== Footnotes ==

Line 21:

Line 21:

*[[Family History]]

*[[Family History]]

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==Further Sources==

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*Kimball, Marie. "Who Were the Jeffersons?" Chap. I in [''Jefferson: The Road to Glory, 1743-1776.'']. New York: Coward-McCann, 1943.

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[[Category:Legends]]

[[Category:Personal Life]]

[[Category:Personal Life]]

Current revision

There is still considerable debate regarding Jefferson's purported Welsh ancestry.[1] To date, no hard evidence connecting Thomas Jefferson's known ancestors to Wales has been found.

"The tradition in my father's family was, that their ancestor came to this country from Wales, and from near the mountain of Snowdon, the highest in Great Britain. I noted once a case from Wales, in the law reports, where a person of our name was either plaintiff or defendant; and one of the same name was secretary to the Virginia Company. These are the only instances in which I have met with the name in that country. I have found it in early records..."[2]

Jefferson went on to say that the only "particular information" he had of any paternal ancestor was about his grandfather, also named Thomas (1679-1731). While Jefferson knew little about his father's line, he was well-informed about his mother's people, the Randolphs: "They trace their pedigree far back in England and Scotland, to which let everyone ascribe the fath and merit he chooses."[3]

Henry Randall, a nineteenth-century biographer, took the line only to Jefferson's grandfather Thomas. Randall mentioned the tradition of emigration from Wales and also noted that a Jefferson was among the Colonial Assembly at Jamestown in 1619.[4] In Sarah Nicholas Randolph's life of her great-grandfather, she included Jefferson's statements from the Autobiography about a Welsh connection. She also cited the Jefferson name among the legislative assembly in Jamestown in 1619, adding that the Jeffersons first arrived in Virginia in 1612. But she had no evidence for a link between the Jamestown Jefferson and Thomas Jefferson's line.[5]

More recently, Dumas Malone took the line back one more generation, to a Thomas Jefferson who was living in Henrico County in 1679.[6] Malone also observed that Jefferson never spent much time on the remote subject of genealogy.[7] Though the Welsh connection remained elusive, Malone noted that Peter Jefferson named his place on the James River "Snowdon," after the mountain in Wales where early Jefferson supposedly lived.[8] Beyond the first Thomas Jefferson (Jefferson's great-grandfather), Malone felt the records were too scanty to draw any conclusions.

Two possible lineages have been presented. In an essay in the Collected Papers of the Monticello Association, Olivia Taylor presented material which places the early Jefferson in England, not Wales. Beyond the Thomas Jefferson who died in Virginia in 1697 is the Jeaffreson family, a well-documented English line from Samuel Jeaffreson (d. ante Oct. 23, 1590), owner of an estate in Suffolk, to Samuel Jeaffreson (bapt. Oct. 11, 1607 - d. after 1685), a planter in St. Christopher's and Antigua. This Samuel Jeaffreson had three sons, Samuel, Thomas, and Richard.[9] This Thomas may be Jefferson's great-grandfather.

Another lineage has been proposed by Edgar Hickisch in an unpublished monograph on Peter Jefferson. Hickisch cited the work done by Marie Therese Jeaffreson in the British Museum.[10] According to this source, one John Jeaffreson came to Virginia early in the 17th century, made a fortune, and returned to England, where he married Ann Scott and purchased Dullingham House. (Peter Jefferson named a daughter Anna Scott.) The coat of arms John Jeaffreson acquired was the same as the one used by TJ. Members of this family who emigrated to Virginia, presumably to find fortunes equal to John's were William in 1650; Mary in 1653; and Thomas, who arrived about 1660. This Thomas might be Jefferson's great-grandfather; but his English origins are still unclear.[11]

Further work needs to be done; evidently no on has made any efforts in Wales.

Footnotes

↑ This article is based on RLM, "Jefferson's Ancestry: English or Welsh?", February 9, 1990.